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The Roleplaying Initiative?

Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
edited November 2009 in Fan Base Alpha
I posted this on the CORP website, as well, so this is just a Copy-Pasta.

Now, I am no expert when it comes to RP. I know I'm not active, at all, in this community, which may lead many to question my authentication or my motive. I'll start off by being blunt, however, because I'm not good at mincing words. I don't randomly choose a game and play it for long periods of time unless there's a community, somewhere, that actively Roleplays; I've found that in numerous games I've played - my most frequent being World of Warcraft, of which I'm the leader of an All-Tauren Roleplaying Guild on US-Wyrmrest Accord - and I was hopeful that there would be RP here.

I found it, don't get me wrong, but I feel that there could be more. It's very ... Unusual ... for RP to be found in a club, where heroes go to relax, sit down, have drinks while there's chaos brewing somewhere. It's understandable that because of the way the Champions Online server is built, it's difficult to get a massive gathering of Roleplayers anywhere else besides Club Caprice. (Wouldn't it be nice if Cryptic could give Designated RP servers for us to enjoy?) I feel, though, that these constrictions could very-well benefit a good majority of the community, but not all. The thing I like about this Server system is that you seem like you're a single hero amongst several others, not a million. Why not use that to our advantage? To me, it looks as if each server "room" is a single comic book series where there's only a few, select characters that star in it; it makes the Champions more unique, in a way, against the backdrop of the entire world. Sure, the only problem would be that everyone has made friends, and so would not part with them to be in any other "room." We still have the Champions RP channel, however, to keep us all connected and in communication, and we should use this to our advantage. No one is constricted to a single server, and so would be available for anyone to contact or such.

I seem to be going off on a tangent. Why am I posting this? Because I'm a roleplayer that cares a lot about his community/communities. I've been working hard on WoW to encourage RP, and now I want a reason to stick with Champions. I want to do what I can to help RP, and to make it the best it could be. I'm not, in any way, saying that the RP in the game is "dying." To jump to such conclusions only makes the situation worse. It can definitely be improved, however. How?

1. RP everywhere you go. Don't stay in Club Caprice because it's where everyone else is. Fly/run around, encourage others around you to RP. If you don't find any RP, start it yourself. Hang around player hotspots, encourage others to join with you - REMAIN IC when interacting.

2. Help improve the community. Post suggestions, ideas, or the like to help other Roleplayers get inspiration for character/super group concepts.

3. Don't single out the middle-man. Sure, there are always bad apples in a Roleplaying community, but the way to help improve them is to NOT CALL AND SINGLE THEM OUT. Talk with them, give them better ideas for their characters. Help them. It's very discouraging when someone laughs about a player's backstory, and it could prevent another Roleplayer from joining the fray for fear of being laughed at because of an unusual character concept.

4. Frequent the Forums, the CORP Channel, and the Champions RP Channel. As it stands, besides Club Caprice, all of these places are the best place to find planned RP, and future events. Nobody likes running solo, especially when there are other players around them who are just like them. Keep in communication with your fellow roleplayers.

5. Spread out. Don't form cliques. I cannot stress this enough. In any game where there is RP to be found, there will be Cliques revolving around it. Each game varies, but these cliques could be difficult to get into, which could discourage a prospecting Roleplayer from ever RP'ing in the game. My personal advice is for people to spread out their RP so that it doesn't have to be in their personal group of friends or buddies.

6. Nobody likes an Elitist. This coincides very much with #3 on this list. In a Roleplaying community, there are different kinds of players: the first is your usual Average Joe, who is in the game to RP casually while enjoying the game all the same. Then you have the Bad Apples, who do nothing but cause grief to other players because if their "unusual" playing style. But none of these are worse than Elitists. Elitists are the people that do nothing but point out flaws in characters, ignore others who do not RP the way that they're used to, and/or stick with their own, personal clique/group to find RP in. Every Roleplaying community has them. No one likes them. The only way to prevent elitism is to be helpful to your fellow roleplayers, encourage them to RP with you or random strangers. NEVER make fun of them because they have a weird backstory. The phrase "Don't judge a book by its cover" also applies, here. Everyone looks strange, at first glance, but people have to learn to accept them and acknowledge them. The only way to make a community great is to encourage people to help.

7. Don't be afraid to ask for help. We all need assistance every once in a while, whether against a difficult boss in-game or with a character concept. Don't be afraid to offer your advice to a person in need, and don't be afraid to ask for help. The only way to learn is by trial and error; nobody is perfect.

8. Don't change around your character because you want to fit with other people's storylines. As is already said in a post following this one, not every character will be the same as one another; meaning, not everyone will get along. Just because you want to get into a group of folks that RP a different way than you do doesn't mean that you have to conform to their playing style. Keep your character unique in its own way.

9. Not every character will work well together. This, honestly, cannot be stressed enough (and I cannot believe I didn't add it before). As was already said in #8, not every character will be the same, and not every character will be able to interact with one another. Each character should remain unique in their own way.

10. Have fun. Roleplaying is not a chore, it's a hobby - as is playing Video Games. You're doing it to have fun, and just to have fun. Don't make it into a job on a day-to-day basis.

People may be wondering what business it is of mine to want to suggest anything like this when I've hardly made myself known in-game. The fact of the matter is that I care more about an RP community than I do for an entire game, and I would hate to see one with so much potential to fail because of people not acting out for the better of the community. The only problem is that I'm just one person, and I can't do things myself. This would need all of CORP to help make it one the best Roleplaying community it can be.

~ Kurama0900
Post edited by Archived Post on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited November 2009
    Thank you for posting this here, and not just on the CORP website. :)

    The suggestions are all well-stated and have merit and I think even non-RPers can benefit from reading it, if only to understand that we're not all as rude as the few bad apples out there (which I'm rather happy I haven't seen in CO).

    In regard to your #3, there's also a small group of RPers (about a hundred or so) who have formed an informal friends network in the game. As with team members and supergroup mates, the game will default the highest priority shard to the top of your list any time you change zones and this will frequently cause the RPers to zone into a shard with a higher population of RPers. Perhaps I could appeal to have this thread added to your list? link:RP Networking
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited November 2009
    Storm Radio have a nice way of promoting this. http://www.thestormradio.com/

    They host radio shows through the week, inviting other players to join them in random locasions of choice talking in and out of character between local and their own channel.


    Im a casual RP'er myself but I love the whole idea of immersing yourself in a universe you helped bring to life.
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